Warm August weather in Tasmania

A warm day in Hobart: It reached 19.8 °C in Hobart at 12:53 this (Wednesday) afternoon. This is 6.8 °C above the long-term average maximum for August. It is very unusual for Hobart to get a temperature this high at this time of year. The most recent similar example was the 19.7 °C on the 3rd of August 2003.

The highest temperature ever recorded in August in Hobart (and also the highest for Tasmania) was 24.5 °C on the 26th in 1977, which followed 23.8 °C the previous day.

The highest temperature in Tasmania today was 20.8 °C at Friendly Beaches, followed by 20.6 °C at Hobart Airport (7.2 °C above the August normal) and 20.5 °C at Bushy Park (7.5 °C above normal). Temperatures were not quite so warm in the north of the State; typically around 15 °C. Today's temperatures are included on the afternoon weather bulletin.

A warm night in Hobart: Hobart's minimum temperature in the 24 hours to 9 am this (Wednesday) morning was 11.6 °C, which is 6.5 °C above the long-term average minimum for August. This was registered at 9 am on Tuesday, just as the instruments were reset. In the "overnight" period from 6 pm to 9 am, the minimum in Hobart was 13.1 °C.

The highest minimum temperature ever recorded in Hobart in August was 14.4 °C on the 19th in 1885. The highest in Tasmania was 15.0 °C, on the 26th in 1977 at Strahan and again on the 28th in 1994 at Swansea.

Two warm nights in a row: The last two nights have also been much warmer than normal. The minimum in the 24 hours to 9 am on Tuesday (2 August) was 10.4 °C. It is uncommon to have two August nights in a row warmer than 10 °C in Hobart. It has happened only 13 times since records began in 1882. It has, however, occurred several times in recent years, including the 3rd/4th in 2003 and the 10th/11th in 2002.

A fortnight of warm weather: Temperatures in Tasmania have generally been above normal since the 18th of July (except for the 26th and 27th of July). Today's very warm weather has come about because northwesterly winds have brought warm air from across the mainland to Tasmania. Overnight temperatures have been kept high by the windy conditions.
Recent temperatures for individual locations are given in the Daily Weather Observations (although these will not show today's maxima until tomorrow).

Cold change to come: The warm weather is not going to last. A cold front will cross the state this evening, bringing much cooler southwesterly winds. It is even likely that the highlands will get some snow tonight and tomorrow. Check the current forecasts for the most recent information.

Further information

Climate Services Section
Tasmania and Antarctica Regional Office
Bureau of Meteorology
Phone (03) 6221 2043
Email climate.tas@bom.gov.au

Forecasts and current observations

Regional Forecasting Centre
Phone (03) 6221 2000 (24 hours)
Or on the web at www.bom.gov.au/weather/tas/